1. Formative assessment in action: the KFAP projects Chris Harrison DEPS King’s College London www.kcl.ac.uk/education

2. Balancing Demands Formative Assessment Summative Assessment

3. Assessment for Learning... Assessment for learning is any assessment for which the first priority in its design and practice is to serve the purpose of promoting learning. It thus differs from assessment designed primarily to serve the purposes of accountability, or of ranking, or of certifying competence.

4. Background Inside the Black Box (1998) KMOFAP (1999 - 2001) Working Inside the Black Box (2002) Assessment for learning : Putting it into practice (2003)

5. Effect Size Control & experimental groups Pre-test & Post-test Average control gp. scores 10% in pre-test and 45% in post-test Average experimental gp. scores 10% in pre-test and 60% in post- test Effect size is EG gain - CG gain range 50 - 35 = 0.3 50

6. IBB Studies Effect sizes were between 0.4 - 0.7 but ……. Studies lacked detail of classroom practice Short - term Few were from UK so ………

7. KMOFAP King’s Medway Oxfordshire Formative Assessment Project 2 LEAs, 3 secondary schools in each, 2 science and 2 maths teachers in each school (24 teachers in total) Funded by Nuffield Foundation, and later by United States National Science Foundation through partnership with Stanford

8. Classroom assessment Four aspects: –Quality of questions –Quality of feedback –Sharing criteria with learners –Self-assessment

9. Making Classroom Assessment Work the content and pace of the work is determined by the evidence learning is dependent on the interaction between the teacher and the learner create environment where errors are made explicit and accepted as a necessary part in moving towards understanding

10. Effects of Feedback Kluger & DeNisi (1996) Review of 607 effect sizes (12652 individuals) Average effect size 0.4 BUT standard deviation almost 1 40% of effect sizes were negative

11. Response to Feedback Students respond to performance-standard gap in different ways - Abandon it - Change it - Deny it exists - Attempt to reach it

12. Kinds of feedback: Israel (1) 132 low and high ability year 7 pupils in 12 classes in 4 schools Same teaching, same aims, same teachers, same classwork Three kinds of feedback: – marks – comments – marks+comments

13. Comments v Marks FeedbackGainInterest marks nonetop +ve bottom -ve comments 30%all +ve both nonetop +ve bottom -ve Butler (988) Br. Journal of Psychol 58 1-14

14. Kinds of Feedback: Israel 2 200 Y6 & students Divergent thinking tasks 4 matched gps - EG1 (Comments), EG2 (Grades), EG3 (Praise), CG (No feedback). Achievement EG1 > (EG2 =EG3 = CG) Ego-involvement (EG2 = EG3) > (EG1 = CG) Butler( 1987)

15. Looking more deeply at what happens Hayes (2003) –Two matched year 7 classes –26 in experimental group, 22 in control group –Study of one term Strategies –Self Assessment/Reviewing –Target Setting –Discussing Criteria –Looking back at previous work –Doing an Investigation Together –Sharing Good Practice –Looking at and Discussing a Model Investigation

16. Looking more deeply at what happens : Outcomes Investigations –Experimental group outperforms treatment group –Size of effect equivalent to 0.5 GCSE grade End of year 7 test –Experimental group outperforms treatment group –Size of effect equivalent to 0.5 GCSE grade Adaptive beliefs –No change Maladaptive beliefs –Large reduction The hard thing is not getting new ideas into their heads. It’s getting the old ones out…

17. Reflections - 2 Motivation and Self-esteem Those given feedback as marks are likely to see it as a way to compare themselves with others (ego-involvement), those given only comments see it as helping them to improve (task-involvement): the latter group out-perform the former (Butler, 1987). Students told that feedback “..will help you to learn” learn more than those told that “how you do tells us how smart you are and what grades you’ll get” ; the difference is greatest for low attainers (Newman & Schwager, 1995).

18. Reflections - 3 Motivation and Self-esteem In a competitive system, low attainers attribute their performance to lack of ‘ability’, high attainers to their effort; in a task oriented system, all attribute to effort, and learning is improved, particularly amongst low attainers (Craven et al. 1991). Feedback given as rewards or grades enhances ego rather than task involvement and can damage the self-esteem of low attainers. We need to change learners’ belief from ‘My IQ is fixed - I’m bright or stupid and that’s it’ to ‘I can get smarter by trying’ (see “Self-Theories” by Carol Dweck, 2000)

19. Kinds of Feedback:Canada 80 Y9 students learning major scales in music - Experimental group 1 (EG1) given written praise list of weaknesses workplan - Experimental group 2 (EG2) given oral feedback nature of errors chance to correct errors - Control group (CG) no feedback Boulet et al (1990)

20. Kinds of Feedback:Canada EG2 > EG1 who only achieved about the same as CG

21. Changes in Feedback : Teachers Teachers have been challenged in composing useful comments that students can and want to read Teachers have changed their view of the role of written work in promoting student learning Teachers have had to give more attention to differentiation

22. Changes in Feedback : Students Students take note of teacher comments and use these to improve their work Students have changed their perception of the role of written work in learning

23. Self-assessment: Portugal Maths teachers trained for 20 weeks in promoting pupil self-assessment Progress of pupils taught by these teachers and other trained teachers (matched in age, qualifications and experience) compared for same mathematics course over same amount of time Pupils who used self-assessment did TWICE as well as pupils in the other teachers’ classes

24. Pupil Role Point A---------------------------------- Point B Recognise points. Close the gap. Teachers can help with this but only the learner can close the gap So self-assessment is essential if the gap is to be closed

25. Can learners self-assess? “ ….a number of pupils ……..….are content to ‘get by’ …….. Every teacher who wants to practise formative assessment must reconstruct the habits acquired by his pupils.” P. Perrenoud (1991)

26. Developing Self Assessment Skills Understand how criteria play out in different situations Recognise quality Open to attempting improvement ……. and these can be achieved through Peer assessment Modelling quality/ steps towards quality Reviewing/Redrafting

27. IBB Classroom assessment Four aspects: –Quality of questions –Quality of feedback –Sharing criteria with learners –Self-assessment

28. WIBB Classroom assessment Four aspects: –Quality of questions –Quality of feedback - Peer and Self Assessment - Formative Use of Summative Tests

29. What has KMOFAP achieved Found a voice for students that have empowered them in their learning Opened teachers’ ears to their students’ needs Enabled teachers to find alternative ways to create and support the types of learning environments that result in achievement and develop self-regulation

30. Essential elements The quality of pupil-teacher interactions The stimulus and help for students to take active responsibility for their own learning Collaborative learning

31. Why Has This Intervention Worked? Teachers and Heads that were willing to take risks Peer support and reflective practice Classroom support

32. Contact Details e-mail : Christine.Harrison@kcl.ac.uk Web pages http://www.kcl.ac.uk/education/kal.html